


Bending the Rules

by mcgarrygirl78



Series: fiftysomething [29]
Category: Criminal Minds
Genre: Alternate Universe, Drama, F/M, Family, Friendship, Humor, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-10-06
Updated: 2014-10-06
Packaged: 2018-02-20 01:56:17
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,026
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2410700
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mcgarrygirl78/pseuds/mcgarrygirl78
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>She wore clothes that confused him, spoke a language he wasn’t fluent in, and lived a life apart from his.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Bending the Rules

“Daddy?”

“Yes, love of my life?”

“I think its time for a daddy-daughter talk.”

“Is that so?” Hotch closed his binder and focused on his daughter.

“Yeah,” Bree nodded. “We need to have a conversation.”

“Come in and sit down.”

Bree walked into her father’s study. She was growing up so fast and the transition was difficult for Hotch. She would be 14 in a few months, which blew his mind. Her body was changing, she was changing, and he had no idea what to do. There was a part of him that wanted to monitor every inch, freckle, and hormone. Another part of him shied away from studying a young girl too closely, even his own child.

So he put Emily on double duty with Bree and focused on the twins instead. Pre-pubescence was safe. Maybe he was about to be called on it. Sabrina was her mother’s daughter…calling out her father didn’t bother her in the least. She sat Indian style in the chair across from his desk. He remembered when she was small enough to play under it.

Hotch took a good look at her. She was still growing, was about 5’6” now. Bree had strong, athletic legs from field hockey and sprints. She loved to show them off in shorts and short skirts, which freaked her father out. She wasn’t developing breasts as fast as she would like but Hotch wasn’t complaining. Emily took her bra shopping, for encouragement, and she now had four or five frilly pieces of material that he tried to avoid in the laundry room.

Her voice began to sound more grownup and less squeaky. She already had her menstrual cycle and boys were a very hot topic. Bree still seemed mostly indifferent to the male species as a whole but that didn't stop her from discussing them. Some of her girlfriends were quite eager for male attention and that worried Hotch. Emily insisted that everything worried him so he may as well just add something else to the list. True or untrue, and it was so true, Hotch didn’t want to hear it.

“So what's up, kiddo?” he wondered how much longer he’d get away with calling her that.

“Things are definitely getting ready to change.” She replied. “I'm sure it’s just as mind blowing for me as it is for you, Daddy.”

“You guys are growing up pretty fast.” Hotch conceded. “All four of you marked school milestones this year and I cannot believe you're almost 14. I remember the day you were born.”

“You made it there by the skin of your teeth. Uncle Derek almost brought me into the world; that’s why my middle name is Morgan.”

“Almost.” Hotch smiled. “I made it though and it was one of the most amazing moments of my life. You were absolutely beautiful…you still are.”

“Thank you, Daddy.”

“What's on your mind, Bree? It seems as if you want to talk about something specific.”

“Well, I'm growing up now.”

“Yeah, I noticed that.” he nodded.

“I'm growing up, changing, and engaging in rites of passage.”

“Mmm hmm, and I'm doing my absolute best not to smother you. How do you think I'm doing?”

“You're pretty good.” She smiled. “We have our moments, but all in all I can't complain. You’ve come a long way from attempting to walk me to the bus stop on the first day of school.”

“It’s hard to let go.” Hotch replied.

“I know Daddy; I can appreciate that.”

They both nodded. She leaned her elbows on the desk and examined him. Hotch held up to the scrutiny…he was used to it from her mother. The older Bree got, the more like Emily she became. It was scary as hell.”

“I met a boy.” She said.

“Aha, so that’s it. What's boy’s name?”

“Kamal Hassan. Daddy, he's just so…I've never met anyone like him before.”

“Well you're fourteen; you’ve got a long time to meet many fascinating people.”

“Don’t do that. Don’t make it less than what it is.”

“I'm not doing that, Bree, I promise. Where did you meet him?”

“We go to school together. I don't know why I never noticed him before but he’s always running on the field during field hockey practice. One day during cool down I was bragging about my nose ring and he said he thought I would look cute with one. I ignored him; guys are obnoxious that way. But he’s not obnoxious, Daddy…he's intriguing.”

“Is he going to be a freshman too?” Hotch asked. His stomach was churning now, and his head began to thud. He knew what was happening, where this might be going. Hotch didn’t want to go there.

“He’ll be a sophomore in September. He has a 3.7 GPA, he’s a hurdler, and he loves chess. He plays the guitar and loved Eli Roth films. He’s…”

“Captured your heart.” Her father finished her sentence. “I'm not blind; I know lots of boys have given you attention in the past couple of years. I would describe your attitude as indifferent at best. You were even that way with Toby, and you liked him.”

“Kamal is different. He’s special Daddy.”

“Really?”

“Yeah.” Bree nodded.

“You wanted to tell me about him.”

“He asked me if I wanted to go to a movie. American University has a classic film series and on Sunday afternoon they're showing _Manhattan_. I thought…”

“You're only 13.” Hotch replied.

“I'm almost fourteen.” She said.

“We established the dating age to be 15.”

“I know but…I really like him, Daddy. I can't deny that seeing him would be a clear violation of the established rule but I adore him. I want to spend more time with him, and maybe go out on dates. Please.”

Hotch sighed, leaning back in his chair. He knew something like this would come along but he assumed it would only be in theory. Bree loved to smack her father around with hypotheticals. Kamal Hassan was more than a hypothetical. He was the first boy the soon-to-be Director of the FBI might have to torture.

Toby Schulman was a bit of an annoyance for a harried father but this was something else altogether. Unbeknownst to him, while the insanity of life swirled around him, his little girl was experiencing first love. Kids started things too early these days…they were hardly kids anymore. Hotch could close his eyes and see Bree in her bassinet. He could see her in her mother’s arms for those first Christmas pictures.

He saw her learning to crawl, walk, and eventually run like the wind. She used to sleep with dolls, love Sesame Street, and sing Simon and Garfunkel in the car. OK, she still sang Simon and Garfunkel in the car. But he wasn’t looking at his baby girl anymore; she was growing into someone else.

This girl had hot pink streaks in her black hair and would soon sport a nose ring. She wore clothes that confused him, spoke a language he wasn’t fluent in, and lived a life apart from his. Surely he was the last to know about Kamal. There was probably a good reason for that but that didn’t mean Hotch liked it.

“He wants to take you to a movie on Sunday?” he asked.

Bree nodded.

“It’s just going to be the two of you; no friends or chaperones?”

“Our friends don’t like Woody Allen. I'm not even sure if I like Woody Allen yet but I want to experience him. Kamal says _Manhattan_ is the perfect introduction to him. Most people would say _Annie Hall_ but he disagrees.”

“So does your mother.”

“So we would go to the movie, it’s at one, grab a bite to eat, and then come home. We planned to meet up and take the train. Well, we would if you say yes.”

 _No!_ Hotch’s mind screamed. _No, no, no, no_ **NO!** _There would be no train. There would be no dark theatres with sophomore boys who probably wanted to touch her in places that were unacceptable now or ever. No! Oh my God, in the name of all that’s holy, no way_. Hotch was sure he would have to bleach his brain to stop thinking about these things now. For that he wanted to kill Kamal Hassan. Instead he just cleared his throat.

“I’ll think about it.” He finally said.

“Oh my God, you will?” her big brown eyes lit up.

“Yes,” Hotch nodded though he wanted to shake his head. What was he thinking? Dark theaters, roaming hands…his daughter was so off limits. “I’ll talk with your mother and we’ll make a decision. It’s Wednesday so we’ll let you know on Friday.”

“Thank you so much, Daddy!” Bree squealed, springing out of her chair like a pogo stick. She rushed into her father’s arms. “I love you so, so, so, so much. No matter what you decide, I love you for thinking about it. I mean that. Thank you.” She kissed his cheek.

“I love you too, Sabrina. Watching you grow up, change, and eventually leave is not easy for me. It’s a wonderful, fascinating experience but it’s not easy. I don’t want to smother you or make it difficult for you to enjoy this time in your life. Still, it’s my job to make decisions that will keep you both happy and safe. You know that, right?”

“Yeah.” She sat on his lap. “Georgeann Hawkins, Daddy, I told you that I would never, ever forget.”

Hotch smiled, kissing her cheek. He would hold onto her as long as he could. In that time he, and Emily, would teach her as much as they could so when they had to let go it wouldn’t be as hard. He knew he was kidding himself that it wouldn’t be one of the most difficult things he ever had to do. Jack was about to leave the nest, had already left for his Habitat for Humanity Gulf Coast summer project. Slowly they would all go and though Hotch joked about changing the locks to keep them out, sometimes he missed them already.

***

“Could you tell me everything you know about Kamal Hassan?”

“Who?” Emily looked up from her laptop. Another year of classes were over at the Academy but the National Academy had a busy six weeks coming with seminars in everything from hostage negotiation to terrorist interrogation. Her job was a year round position and though Emily loved it she couldn’t wait to take a nice vacation with her family away from it all.

“Kamal Hassan.” Hotch said the name slower. “Do you know anything about him?”

“That name is really familiar.” Emily leaned back against the mound of pillows. “Why do I know…he's a boy? He’s the boy that Bree likes.”

“Ding, ding, ding.” Hotch poked his head out of the bathroom. “What do you know about him?”

“He and Bree go to school together and he's about to be a sophomore. He’s a hurdler on the school track team; I think the 400 meters is his specialty. They met on the athletic field.”

“Is that all you know?”

“No.” Emily replied in a tone that indicated her husband was interrupting her. “I know a lot about him but I’ll give you the abridged version. He plays the guitar and loves 90s and new millennium modern rock. I think Bree said his favorite band is the Gin Blossoms. His hair is a touch too long and Bree likes that.

“He’s into serious things like politics, philosophy, and religion but he loves gory movies and comic book artwork as well. He’s a naturalized U.S. citizen, born in Amman, and he’s Muslim. Oh, and he has a motorbike…a really big deal. Why are you asking about Kamal?”

“Bree told me about him tonight.” Hotch finished up in the bathroom. He came into the bedroom and closed the door. The kids were asleep, the house was quiet. When he joined Emily in bed, he kissed her nose and took her laptop. “You were done with this, right?”

She nodded, wearing a smile.

“She really likes him, baby, I can tell. Our little girl isn’t the type who comes swooning over a new guy every few days. In fact, despite the renegade boyfriend thing she had a while back, I've been quite happy with her indifference to the opposite sex.”

“I'm sure you have been.” Emily replied. “If you know about Kamal then it must be something special.”

“He wants to take her on a date. She asked me tonight.”

“Are you serious?”

“Wow, good use of tone. It almost sounds as if you had no idea.”

“I didn’t Aaron.” She playfully hit his arm. “And I'm the language expert around here, Mister.”

“Bree didn't tell you anything about the date?”

“No.” Emily shook her head. “I got my earful about Kamal when she asked to tag along with Nat and I on our shopping excursion on Sunday. She made no mention of a date but it was clear she was smitten. It made me smile; those feelings don’t come around as often as people think. First love is something really special. At least I want to think it is for my daughter.”

“No?”

“No what?”

“You're sure she didn’t mention it?” Hotch asked.

“She didn’t mention anything to me about a date. We had a conversation a while back and I told Bree that I wouldn’t be a party to ganging up on Daddy. If there was something she truly wanted or wanted to do, we would always decide together as parents. It wasn’t fair to pit us against each other in an attempt to get her way.”

“That’s an excellent lesson.” He said.

“I thought so. I'm getting kinda good at this mom thing.”

“You're an amazing mother.” Hotch kissed her shoulder. “Well Kamal asked her out this weekend.”

“What's the plan?”

“He wants to take her to the American University classic film series; they're showing _Manhattan_.”

“Oh my God, he wants to introduce Bree to Woody Allen?”

“You want me to say yes just because of that, don’t you?” Hotch asked.

“Maybe.”

“She’s 13 years old, Emily.”

“I know. She’ll be 14 in two months.”

“We both decided, together, that 15 would be the dating age.” Hotch said.

“Yeah, we did, but it’s just a movie. Saying yes to this doesn’t mean that we’re lifting the rule…its just a special treat. Let’s say it’s because she got straight A’s.”

“I was very proud of her.”

“So was I. Our daughter had perfect attendance; she won a sports trophy, and spoke at graduation. I think we can let her go to a movie with a boy she likes.”

“There's one problem.” Hotch said.

“Woo, only one problem…that’s a good start.”

“He's a boy. He's a 15 year old boy, Emily. If he puts his hands on my daughter I will put him on a milk carton.”

Emily laughed. She leaned against her husband and laughed. Hotch stroked her hair.

“I'm having a vision of you, Rossi, and Morgan finding poor Kamal and pulling him into the SUV.”

“It can be done.” Hotch replied.

“When does he want to take her?”

“He wants to go on Sunday and then take her to lunch. Oh, and did I mention that they want to take the train? I'm against the train.”

“I'm not.”

“Baby…”

“We cannot shelter them, Aaron. We can love them, teach them, raise them right, and pray for their growth and safety. That’s it. My mother sheltered me; she treated me as if I couldn’t mingle with the masses. I lived in an Ivory Tower most of my life. Should I scare the hell out of you with reminders of how I acted out? I refuse to shelter our children…and you do too.”

“I do?”

“Yes.” Emily nodded.

“I refuse to shelter our children.” Hotch repeated. “OK, so we let her go?”

“It’ll be a good experience for them both.”

“I want to talk to this kid, Emily. I want to talk to his parents. I want to talk to this kid a lot. There's a small chance I want to threaten this kid.”

“Well his father teaches Political Science at George Washington University so he shouldn’t be hard to find. His mother works for Islamic Women’s Initiative.”

“I’ll call him tomorrow morning and suggest we all talk. I hope that he’s just as curious about Bree as I am about Kamal.”

“I'm sure he is.”

“Are we doing the right thing?” Hotch asked.

“Its one date honey.” Emily caressed his face. “It'll make her happy. She could’ve said she was going out with friends and snuck out with Kamal. We raised her to talk to us and trust in us. She respects that.”

“I still like fifteen.”

“So do I.” Emily conceded. “The rule hasn’t changed…it’s on the date by date basis. If she makes Kamal her boyfriend, she’ll slip through the loophole.”

“Yes, the loophole you pointed out to her. I'm hoping it'll only be one date and then she’ll just realize boys are icky.”

“Don’t bet on it.” His wife laughed. “It’s a nice thought though.”

“They're all growing up too fast. The Dylan and Isabel conundrum continues to confound me. And Lex…”

“What about Lex?”

“Nevermind.” Hotch shook his head.

“Oh no, no nevermind, not where the children are concerned.” Emily sat up. “What are you thinking?”

“Nothing baby, really. Lex is fine. They're all fine, even if they are growing up too fast. I'm struggling to keep up.”

“You're doing fine.” She kissed him. “We’re both doing fine. I think its time for bed. Does that sound good?”

“Mmm…yeah.” Hotch pulled her close, sighing as their bodies rubbed together. “Bedtime, Mrs. Hotchner.”

“That’s Deputy Director Hotchner.”

“Ooh, yes ma'am.” He grinned and his dimples poked into his cheeks. “Have I ever told you that the commanding side of you is sexy as hell?”

Emily reached to turn out the lamp. If Hotch wanted commanding, then she would give him commanding.

***

  



End file.
